A learning organization is the term given to a company that facilitates the learning of its members and continuously transforms itself. Learning organizations develop as a result of the pressures facing modern organizations and enables them to remain competitive in the business environment.

1. Unit 3: Organizational Design & Strategy
Lesson 8: Learning & Organization Strategy

2. What are Learning
Organizations?
 Organizations that facilitates the learning of its members and
continuously transforms itself.
 Organization with an ingrained philosophy for anticipating,
reacting and responding to change, complexity and uncertainty.
 Learning organizations develop as a result of the pressures
facing modern organizations and enables them to remain
competitive in the business environment.
 Organizations need to maintain knowledge about new products
and processes | Understand what is happening in the outside
environment | Produce creative solutions using the knowledge
2 and skills of all within the organization.
RIMS, Bangalore | PGDM 2nd Year, Strategic Management April 24, 2012

3. 3
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4. Characteristics of Learning
Organizations
 Systems Thinking  Personal Mastery
 An approach to problem  Commitment by an individual to
solving, by viewing "problems" the process of learning
as parts of an overall  There is competitive advantage
system, rather than reacting to for an organization whose
specific part, outcomes or workforce can learn more quickly
events than the workforce of other
 Learning organizations use this organizations
method of thinking when  Acquired through staff training &
assessing their company and development
have information systems that
measure the performance of the  Team Learning
organization as a whole and of
its various components  Accumulation of individual
learning | Individuals engage in
dialogue, & discussions (Open
communication & Shared
4 Understanding)
RIMS, Bangalore | PGDM 2nd Year, Strategic Management April 24, 2012

5. Characteristics of Learning
Organizations
 Mental Models  Shared Vision
 Assumptions held by individuals  Important in motivating the staff
& organizations to learn
 Learning organization needs to  Learning organizations tend to
challenge these mental models be flat, and decentralized
 Unwanted values need to be structures
discarded in a process called
‘unlearning’
 Organizations tend to have
‘memories’ which preserve
certain behaviors, norms and
values; it is important to replace
confrontational attitudes with an
open culture
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6. The Learning Cycle
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7. Single & Double Loop Learning
Systems
Single Loop Learning
• Organization reviews
performance against targets &
takes corrective action
Double Loop Learning
• Organization challenges
governing assumptions
• Employees reflect on
behavior, identify ways they
inadvertently contribute to
organization’s problems, and
then change how they act
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RIMS, Bangalore | PGDM 2nd Year, Strategic Management April 24, 2012

8. What is Knowledge
Management?
 Range of strategies and practices used in an organization to
identify, create, represent, distribute, and enable adoption of
insights & experiences.
 Such insights & experiences comprise knowledge, either
embodied in individuals or embedded in organizations as
processes or practices
 Knowledge Management typically focuses on organizational
objectives such as improved performance, competitive
advantage, innovation, sharing of lessons learnt, and continuous
improvement
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9. Importance of Knowledge
Management in Strategy
 Market places are increasingly competitive and the rate of innovation is rising
 Competitive pressures reduce the size of the workforce that holds valuable
business knowledge
 Reduction in staffing create a need to replace informal knowledge with formal
methods
 The amount of time available to experience and acquire knowledge has
diminished
 Early retirement & increasing mortality of workforce lead to loss of knowledge
 Change in strategic direction may result in the loss of knowledge in a specific
area
9  Need to manage increasing complexity as small operating companies are trans-
national sourcing operations
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10. Knowledge Management Spiral
Tacit Knowledge
Internalized knowledge that
an individual may not be
consciously aware of, such
as how he or she
accomplishes particular
tasks
Explicit Knowledge
Knowledge that an
Spiraling Knowledge Process (SECI) individual holds consciously
Knowledge follows a cycle in which implicit in mental focus, in a form
knowledge is ‘extracted’ to become explicit that can be easily
knowledge, and explicit knowledge is ‘re- communicated to others
internalized’ into implicit knowledge.
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11. Knowledge Management Spiral
Socialization: Process that transfers
tacit knowledge in one person to tacit
knowledge in another person |
through direct interaction with
customers and suppliers outside the
organization and people inside the
organization
Externalization: Process for making
tacit knowledge explicit | During face-
to-face communication people share
beliefs and learn how to better
articulate their thinking, though
Internalization: Process of understanding and instantaneous feedback and the
absorbing explicit knowledge in to tacit knowledge simultaneous exchange of ideas
held by the individual | Internalization is largely Combination: Explicit knowledge
experiential, in order to actualize concepts and can be conveyed in
methods, either through the actual doing or through documents, email, data bases, as well
simulations. as through meetings and briefings
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12. Challenges of Creating Learning
Organizations
 Problems of Leadership
 Leaders in the organization may already have mental models that are
entrenched and must be overcome in order to foster the openness
and confidence required
 Learning Organizations require leaders to be open to challenges
about their vision and behavior, and to be prepared to change when
necessary
 Learning Organizations require a questioning approach that is
contradictory to the cultural expectations of both leaders and the
majority of organizations
 Most leaders are promoted to their level because of their expertise at
the previous level, they then fall into the ‘Expert Trap’, telling people
what to do
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13. Challenges of Creating Learning
Organizations
 Long-Term Vision
 Learning Organizations must have a long-term vision, and be focused
on the learning and development of their workers in order to achieve
development of the whole.
 This requires many to make large changes and in a results driven,
time pressured, business environment, the decision to look long-term
is a hard one to take.
 Training and Development required to move towards being a
Learning Organization takes a lot of time that companies may not
be able or willing to spend at the moment.
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RIMS, Bangalore | PGDM 2nd Year, Strategic Management April 24, 2012

14. Hardy Alexander
Founder & Director | Triune Global
Bangalore – 560077
Contact: +91 96864 48698
Email: halexander@triuneglobal.com
My Blog: dayscore.wordpress.com
Thank you
RIMS, Bangalore | PGDM 2nd Year, Strategic Management 14 April 24, 2012